Weekend Box Office Review

Where the Wild Things Are opened at number one this past weekend, taking in over $32 million, a modest amount for such a peculiar children’s film. It relied heavily on the popularity of the book, which has been a success for multiple generations, as well as an eye-catching visual style that translated the book’s images into a full-form live-action world. With themes of alienation and hints to a dysfunctional family, it didn’t necessarily draw as much of the family crowd as your typical family pic, and it also lacked the 3D-CG-ADD-infused animation that kids are used to these days. The second highest-grossing film was Law Abiding Citizen, with $20.2 million. This one relied heavily on its two stars, Jamie Foxx and Gerard Butler (who seems to be in everything this year), as well as it’s fleshed out over-the-top action plot, and drew in the usual amount for a film that caters to that audience. Paranormal Activity finished out the top three, making just over $20 million, for a total of nearly $34 million. For a film that costs a reported $15,000, it is an enormous success, much in the vane of last decade’s The Blair Witch Project. It opened to 760 theaters this weekend, and it’s on schedule to open to hundreds more next weekend in an effort to combat the yearly Saw-Halloween audience. The other new film to open this weekend was The Stepfather, which is yet another remake of a B-horror film. It made just over $12 million, which for a budget of $20 million, isn’t too bad of a performance. It will probably make its money back and will be a mere blip on anyone’s radar within the next couple weekends, as it should be.